Exemplary embodiments of the present invention relate to the art of heat recovery systems and, more particularly, to a heat recovery system for a turbomachine system.
In operation, generators, particularly those employed in connection with gas and steam turbine combined systems, produce a large amount of heat. In order to reduce the amount of heat, most generators are provided with cooling systems. In some instances, air cooling is sufficient. In other cases, particularly in larger generator systems, water is employed as a cooling medium. More specifically, water is directed through, for example stator windings, to capture and guide heat away from the generator. The water is then passed through a cooling tower to remove absorbed heat before being again passed through the generator. While effective, the heat captured from the water is lost, thus resulting in a lower overall efficiency for the power plant. Furthermore, the additional work required to pass the water though the cooling tower further contributes to power plant inefficiencies.